Tutor’s Notes
It was nice to be teaching you all again and it was great to see our newer dancers getting to grips with 2 couple allemandes and strathspey travelling.
We spent some time recapping and adding extra polish to the steps and formations Philippa has been teaching over the last few weeks.

We looked at our skip change of step, how the skip helps us move forward rather than up and how we can shorten the step but still keep the shape of it, maintaining the turn out from the hips and the third position. We then used those small steps to advance and retire and dance back to back in the dance Jig to the Music.

After that we recapped the 2 couple Allemande and focused on keeping the top of the Allemande flat (no “muffin tops”). Again short steps are needed, especially by the man to achieve this. We danced Lady Catherine Bruce’s Reel.

We then learnt the 2 couple promenade, very similar to the 2 couple allemande. The promenade is not a progression however, so on bar 5 the first couple dances up the centre, on bar 6 the second couple following the 1s dance up, on bar 7 both couples continue up and on bar 8 everyone dances diagonally out to their original places.

There is no video of the dances we did with this formation (A Sunday Stroll and There Cam’ a Young Man (both Jigs)), but you can see the promenade danced in this video.

Apparently the title of this dance, There Cam’ A Young Man, comes from The Brisk Young Lad song published in 1776.

There cam’ a young man to my daddie’s door.
My daddie’s door, my daddie’s door;
There cam’ a young man to my daddie’s door,
Cam’ seeking me to woo.

The song is about a brave young lad who came to woo, but was unsuccessful as he had far too much to drink!

The dances we did for those more experienced were Flowers of Edinburgh and Mairi’s Wedding, both well known favourites.